Strength Within:
The Granger Chronicles
The saga of an extraordinary family spanning over 100 years, this book interweaves tales of Granger family secrets and adventures with social history and world events. Within its pages is a vivid, first-hand view of life during one of history’s most dynamic eras: the 19th and 20th centuries. Grangers ride the tidal wave of immigration in answer to the siren call of America, a Granger flapper girl defies the law and marries for love while her father rides the rails across the country and finds a new life in the world of silent movies. Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles brings to life the people, places and times that shaped both the Granger family and North American society overall.
I’d snatch up … this sparkling book. This book belongs in Family History Centres, where people find their ancestors.
– 2009 Writers Digest Self Published Book Awards
Buy the Book
Purchase a copy of Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles here.
Read an Excerpt
Read an excerpt from Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles here.
Read the Reviews
Read what reviewers said about Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles here.
Special Thanks
Erzsébet (Liza) Vastagh, wife of the former Hungarian Ambassador to Canada, has placed Strength Within in several key locations across Canada: University of Alberta in Edmonton and in Calgary, the University of Quebec in Chicoutimi, the Hungarian Cultural Society in Winnipeg and the Hungarian School in Vancouver. Thank you, Liza, for your amazing support!
Get Interactive!
The Granger family tree resides in a free area of Ancestry.ca. Go to that site to create a free account, then search for “Eckhardt Smith (Final)”.
There’s also a photo gallery of historical characters from the book to explore, and a fascinating description of how handwriting analysis became an important research angle when writing Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles.
Personal Appearances
Find the details about readings, events and book launches here. Photos from the book launch for Strength Within: The Granger Chronicles can be viewed here.
Book Club Visits
I’d love to spend an evening with your book club chatting about either of my two books, providing tips on writing family history or memoir, or discussing the writing and researching of Strength Within. It’s fun, friendly, and free! Details are here.